Yes it might, but at what cost and in what direction is it spinning? Sometimes it feels like it's going backwards when it comes to email and it's impact on our productivity and getting important stuff - stuff that adds value - stuff that makes a difference....done.
I don't know about you, but I despise email. There was a time when I thought email was fascinating (yes I'm old enough to remember working life before email), particularly as I travelled around Australia for a few months. To be able to visit an internet cafe to send an email sharing my travel adventures was very exciting at the time. But today I see it as a tiresome, draining activity that is just like the washing - a never ending chore - but unlike the washing, I don't seem to get any satisfaction after having "done" my emails - in fact I've now given up trying to "do" ALL my emails - I've lost motivation to even try.
This is the reason I adopted Hey as my email tool of choice. Hey offers a tool and a philosophy about email that makes this hideous beast a little more palatable - it has certainly helped - but as Cal Newport indicates in his new book A World Without Email - Reimagining Work in the Age of Overload, a more positive approach to email is not necessarily focusing on using the best email management tool.
Tools can only carry so much of the burden, there is a much larger underlying problem, one that I've intuitively sensed for a while but have only just started to put my finger on with the help of the research, experience and wisdom of people such as Cal Newport and Jason Fried. The research is only just starting to reveal just how destructive email can be to our wellbeing. Social media is even worse, but that is a post for another day.
When I learnt that Cal Newport was launching a new book on the dilemma or conflict between technology and productivity I didn't hesitate to pre-order a copy. I now have a hard copy of Newport's book in hand and I'm looking forward to progressing through it - particularly from a wellbeing perspective. I'll share my thoughts and experience here as I absorb his messages and insights.
One thing I know for sure - even before I knew of Newport's book - is that email as workplace system is broken! It is not an effective or efficient way to work and it often takes away a lot of the "joy" we might have had from the work we do. Let me share a recent experience when this was validated for me so clearly.
Last year during the pandemic, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to undertake a leadership role in learning and organisational development for an interim 3-4 month period while a permanent person was recruited into the role. At the time this suited me - most of the work I had in my calendar as a freelancer/consultant had been paused or cancelled due to pandemic restrictions (lockdowns, no travel, working remotely etc). I looked forward to working back in - what some of my friends would describe as - a "real job" for a while.
While a lot of this work was familiar, I also had some stark reminders of the inadequacies and inefficiencies that operate in the workflow of most (knowledge work) organisations - this organisation was no exception.
My overall experience working in this role at this organisation was quite a bit of frustration and despondency at feeling incredibly busy yet not being able to deliver the work I wanted to - work that I knew would be of long term value. In addition, I felt I couldn't complete my key responsibilities and activities unless I worked outside standard working hours i.e. at night or on weekends! I was often working 7 days a week to try and get things done.
Most of my underlying feelings and sense of overwhelm were born out of the significant use of technology - that is, reading and responding to large numbers of emails, attending a plethora of (mostly unproductive) virtual meetings, receiving and responding to IM and the unspoken but implied expectation to always be available. As well as my own individual email challenges, the team I was leading were responsible for managing a team mailbox of internal client queries and requests which I found to be an inefficient and ineffective way to manage this activity, not to mention it was also the source of a lot of conflict.
It didn't take long before I started to experience the beginnings of burnout. My confidence reduced, it was more difficult to do the higher level thinking required for my role and profession. I became more reactive, less emotionally intelligent, more easily triggered, less satisfied with my work - my focus turned to surviving - getting through - rather than thriving and delivering my best work. Toward the end of my tenure, I started to dread Sunday nights and looked forward to Fridays - although I knew the weekend often didn't mean I could rest. I hadn't felt that way in a very, long time. I started in the role very enthusiastically and ending it exhausted and deflated.
My experience heightened my awareness of the challenges of a technology driven workplace on our wellbeing. It gave me a new appreciation for what some of my clients are likely to be experiencing and a renewed motivation to support people to be better versions of themselves through addressing the challenges of working in a "hyperactive hive mind" environment highlighted in Newport's book.
My experience also highlighted the value of having a coach - I would have valued having the external perspective and insight from a coach as I went through this experience. I think a coach would've enabled me to return to the higher level of thinking that I struggled with during this time.
NOTE: I want to recognise that as well as experiencing working in an inefficient organisational workflow, there was the added dimension of experiencing lockdown for an extended period of time resulting in MS Teams meetings dominating most of my days (another very inefficient way of working for a future post).
This experience confirmed that the way we are working - ISN'T working! We need a new way forward if we want to be the best version of ourselves, both at work and in all areas of our lives. I look forward to how I can learn and support others (and myself) as I read Newport's book in the coming weeks and share these insights with you.
